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The Fringe is Upon Us!

September 8, 2016

First Day of the Festival!!!

Don’t you feel like dancing?? The Fringe is finally here! Photo by Brenda Tsang.

Let the Fringe begin! The Vancouver Fringe Festival includes 110 diverse performances, as well as free performances on the Barefoot Wine & Bubbly Stage at the Big Rock Brewery Fringe Bar and numerous special events. In other words, at the Fringe, you will have all the opportunity in the world to FEEL IT ALL! Come to the Festival and join us even if you have no idea what shows you want to see. You’ll be able to find out once you get here as there’s plenty of theatre to see! If you’d like to get a sneak peek of the shows, take a look at our Program Guide online, or grab one at select Blenz Coffee locations. Check out the map of all the distribution points here!

Also, be sure to post about your Fringe experience on social media and use the hashtag #VanFringe so we can follow along!

Nakedness and Noir: A Perfect Opening to the Fringe

Thank you to all the Fringers who contributed to the amazing time we had at Opening Night on Tuesday! The sold out event was as much fun as anyone would expect and more! From appearances by Fringe artists, to the delicious food from Emelle’s, Dockside, and The Keg being lovingly served by our volunteers (and Emelle’s staff), to our Executive Director David Jordan showing off his hot bod in a plea for more bids at the auction, the Opening Night was definitely one to remember.

The silhouette of Butt Kapinski… Photo by: Dakota Shelby.

The enthusiasm for Opening Night was apparent from the beginning as a lot of well-dressed Fringers were lined up outside Performance Works half-an-hour before we were scheduled to open the doors. Once the doors opened, it didn’t take long for the place to start buzzing with conversation and laughter around the gorgeous flower arrangements from Olla Urban Flower Project. Of course it helped that those who attended could take the edge off with drink samples from The Liberty Distillery, Barefoot Wine & Bubbly, and The Great Jamaican—not to mention the chocolatey, malty, special cask from Big Rock Urban Brewery. Many folks got their Festival Raffle tickets from G Adventures staff, who were talking up the trip to Peru, the Raffle’s grand prize. And, of course, we held true to the Film Noir theme as we prepared for the hilarious performance from Butt Kapinski, with decorations and music playing throughout the facility.

We couldn’t have asked for a better night! If you were unable to attend Opening Night, check out some photos from the My City Photos photo booth on our Facebook page—and if you want to contribute to the success of our fundraiser, donate to the Fringe here!

2016 Festival Raffle: Win a Trip for Two to Machu Picchu!

The beautiful scenery of Machu Picchu.

How does nine days in Machu Picchu for the reasonable price of $10 sound? That sounds fair right? Well, thanks to G Adventures, if you buy a ticket for this year’s Festival Raffle, that trip could be yours! This year, they are sending two of you to Machu Picchu to explore the Inca Trail (or you can opt to spend more time in Cusco and take a train ride up instead). It’s going to be a crazy adventure!

The Raffle is a fundraising initiative that supports the Festival and its artists. Anyone, including volunteers, patrons, and artists, can purchase as many tickets as they want! With every ticket, you’ll only improve your chances of winning as you support the Fringe.

You could also travel more locally with the second place prize from Motorino, an XMb Electric Scooter, which will either have you feeling like Indiana Jones or a like WWII war hero (Note: both are extremely badass).

And for our third place prize winner, we have a Kick Ass Pass for two to the Vancouver Fringe Festival in 2017. This would mean that you and a friend could watch as many Fringe shows as you want at no charge!

Tickets are available at the Raffle Tent (by the Fringe Box Office), the Big Rock Brewery Fringe Bar, and around the Festival. Winners will be drawn at Fringe Awards Night on Sunday, September 18 (doors at 9:30pm) at Performance Works (you do not have to be present—we’ll be in touch if you win!). Good luck!

First Week Fringe Bar Madness!

Every night of the Fringe we bring you a music festival within a theatre festival on the Barefoot Wine & Bubbly Stage at the Big Rock Brewery Fringe Bar! This is the best and easiest way to get a taste of just how talented and diverse Vancouver’s music scene is. Our Online Music Partner, BeatRoute Magazine, knows all about our city’s music scene and Senior Editor Maya-Roisin Slater has put together a preview of what to expect at the Fringe Bar over the next few days:

Wooden Horsemen, one of the featured bands at the Fringe Bar! Photo by Jon Vincent.

Our first week’s summary is jam packed with genres, ranging from garage rock to experimental folk. With a little something in store for everyone, grab your cigarette smoking friend with the greasy shoulder length hair and the Nike Cortez shoes and your wide brimmed black hat wearing friend who only communicates with handwritten letters and is making the bolo tie fashionable again—even grab your reserved Uncle Dave! Bring them all down to Granville Island, and there under the twinkling lights, with beer from Big Rock in one hand, and Uncle Dave’s limp wrist in the other, release your inhibitions and dance the night away!

The evening of September 8 will feature Emily Chambers, a soul singer whose music is both nostalgic and bursting with attitude. Having cut her teeth busking across the south of France and parts of Italy, Chambers is more than just a voice, she’s an entertainer. September 9 brings a gritty blues theme with star crossed lovers The Wild Romantics making hearts swell while fusion eight piece, Wooden Horsemen usher in a subtle funk. Drawing from the ‘90s and early 2000s alt music of yore, three piece garage rockers Wishkicker will be lighting your humpday up like the first of July on September 10. Chalked full of all the angst and carelessness that makes power pop so delicious, Wishkicker will have you dancing wildly and journaling about your feelings at the same damn time. We close the week out with Sun Belt, a band that can only be described as the musical equivalent of lemonade on the porch in summer. Dusty desert imagery intersects with haunting surreal characters to create a warm and eerie world. It’s music to daydream and chew a toothpick to, a musical mystery waiting to be solved. Turn your email alerts on and keep your eyes peeled for next week’s edition of Fringe Bar intel. Goodbye for now!

Check out the full lineup of bands and DJs at the Big Rock Brewery Fringe Bar here—and don’t forget, the Bar is in a new location this year, at Ocean Art Works on Granville Island, just outside Ocean Concrete.

Feast at the Fringe

Quality service from Community Pizzeria. Photo by Rosemarie Gresham

You don’t need to worry about going hungry during the Fringe! Every night of the Festival, you’ll have the chance to enjoy some of the best food from Vancouver’s ever-growing food truck industry. There’ll be one truck every weeknight and more on Fridays and Saturdays throughout the Festival in front of the Big Rock Brewery Fringe Bar, located at Ocean Art Works, next to Ocean Concrete.

The Burger Bus
Sometimes a good, solid burger is all you could ever need or want.

Aussie Pie Guy
The only place in Vancouver for authentic Australian Cuisine.

Need a treat before dinner? There’ll be delicious, organic freezies for sale from Tubify at the Info Centre Hub on Thursdays through Fridays during the Festival. Be sure to try out those tasty treats!

Want more suggestions on where to eat during the Festival? Click here to see the full list of food trucks and other places to eat. Happy Feasting!

Sponsor Spotlight: Roundhouse Radio

It’s our great pleasure to welcome Roundhouse Radio as our brand new sponsor! Things are already off to a great start, because for the month of September, the Vancouver Fringe Festival is Roundhouse Radio’s Charity of the Month. This means that for every new Full Membership registration at Roundhouse Radio, they will donate $1 to the Fringe! Not only is this a great way to assist the Fringe, but it’s also a great way to stay connected to the general Vancouver community as well!

Roundhouse 98.3 is based in Vancouver and focuses on representing the city’s diverse population. Their goal is not just to entertain their listeners, but to do everything they can to contribute to their community through engaging storytelling, intelligent discussion, and supporting charities. In their own words: “We want to make a difference for everyone who lives, works, and plays in the City of Vancouver.” Tune in with them on Sunday at 9pm when Tonye Aganaba (a star of the Big Rock Brewer Fringe Bar) will be hosting Guilt & Co Live which will feature live-to-air performances from local, national, and international musicians! And check out their full schedule to learn more about their hosts and programs.

You can decide what shows you want to see by simply reading the show descriptions in the Program Guide, but if you want to get a taste for what shows excite you, then join us at the Fringe-For-All. Watching 40 of this year’s artists previewing their shows will definitely help you decide which of the 110 shows in this year’s Festival you’ll see! Not only that, but this always well-attended event is a great way to meet artists and to connect with other Fringers! Plus… the hilarious David C. Jones will be hosting once again!

The event will start at 10:00pm at Performance Works on September 8. Tickets available for $10 online or at the door (if it doesn’t sell out first!). Get your tickets now!

The Box Office Physically Opens September 6!

Photo by Amar Menon.

Only one more week until the Fringe’s Box Office physically opens! Located at 1398 Cartwright Street on Granville Island (in the “Fish Bowl”) the Box Office will open on September 6. You can purchase tickets in person at the Fringe Box Office, as well as pick up Memberships and Passes.

The Fringe Box Office is open September 6-18, 4-9:00pm on weekdays and noon-9:00pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

Please note that there will be no refunds or exchanges once a ticket has been bought.

If you have any questions about tickets or passes, it’s all explained here!

Quick! Get Your Opening Night Tickets!

Opening Night is almost here and there aren’t many tickets left! Make sure to secure your ticket and join us for a night of Film Noir fun! There is no dress code for this party, so Film Noir costumes as well as jeans will both be enthusiastically welcomed! Also Butt Kapinski will be there to bring the critically acclaimed laughs to the Performance Works stage! Get your tickets now!

Smut Slam: Where Sexy and Storytelling Collide

Cameryn Moore will be hosting Smut Slam!

Have you ever had an insane sexual experience that would make for a pretty crazy story? Have you been dying to tell someone this story but got cold feet every time you tried to? Has holding the story in driven you closer and closer to having a brain aneurysm? Well then, come to the Vancouver Fringe Festival and get your story out at the Smut Slam!

Smut Slam is an open mic show where anyone and everyone can either tell their sexy stories on stage or submit anonymous questions and confessions in the infamous FUCKBUCKET. Cameryn Moore (writer, producer, and performer of Nerdfucker) will be leading this night of “sexploration,” as participants “talk about those times and places and positions where [they] went in bold, poked around our boundaries, or maybe even just stayed home and read the guidebook.”

Sign up to tell your five minute real-life story as a Smut Slammer on September 10 at 10:30pm—and with luck you will be one of the eight to 10 names randomly drawn! Click here for full details, rules, and guidelines. And even if you don’t have a story to share, you’ll want to be there to hear all the juicy details! Get your tickets now!

Dispatches From Deneh’Cho Thompson On Creating His Fringe Play

Tickets to Deneh’s show, The Girl Who Was Raised by Wolverine, are on sale now.

“Playwriting is the most vulnerable thing I have ever done, it brings me to tears, it makes me angry and I find myself running away or turning to vice. As a theatre creator I spend a lot of time discussing the work I most value as an artist; the plays I find most engaging grapple with personal struggles that the playwright has survived.”

Do you want to work with PTC and get your artist fees waived while producing a show for the 2017 Vancouver Fringe Festival? Submit your application for the Fringe New Play Prize today! Your application could lead to you enjoying great benefits that are worth, all together, an estimated $5,000. The benefits include eight months of dramaturgy, creation and rehearsal space, free admission to PTC’s how-to-produce-theatre seminar series called Block P, and a free space on the Fringe Mainstage. If you want to be the next Deneh, click here to apply!

More Artist Mentorship Opportunities with the Fringe

Apocalypse Parade from Popcorn Galaxies is one of the Generation Hot shows.

Did you know the Fringe has programs that focus on providing opportunities for artists to learn and showcase their work?

We are excited to announce Advance Theatre: New Works by Women! In partnership with Ruby Slippers Theatre and Equity in Theatre, the Fringe will showcase dramatic readings of five new plays by Canadian women playwrights in an effort to prioritize equality and diversity in theatre. Click here for the full list of Advance Theatre plays! Tickets to Advance Theatre readings are available at the door only and are pay-what-you-can with a suggested price of $5 to $10.

The Fringe has been collaborating with The Only Animal in the creation of site-specific shows since 2011. This year, the Generation Hot program will be giving a voice to theatre youth who are courageous enough to respond to the climate crisis through new performances. Be sure to catch the creativity of these young performers who have been working with The Only Animal for six months! These pieces will be short, and so they’ve been grouped into three separate programs. Check out the Generation Hot page on our site for details.

Workshops for Artists and Aspiring Artists!

Pick up some tips on how to flyer at the Fringe at Fringe Street Promo 101, a vital part of being a successful Fringe artist! Photo by Abel Goeun Lee.

We love giving Fringe artists the opportunity to display their creativity at the Festival, but we don’t want to leave it there. We also want to give them, and other aspiring artists, tools that they can use for continued success and growth. If you’ve read through page 24 of the Program Guide you may already know where this is going. We’re calling for artists to sign up for workshops!

On Tuesday, September 6 Cameryn Moore will be facilitating Fringe Street Promo 101 for all artists looking to gain skills in promoting their production (which should be everybody). Whether you are flying solo or have a double-digit cast, you can gain some very important knowledge in how to get the word out. Bring flyers for your show, and be ready to talk!

We also have lessons on touring! The On the Road Touring Workshop will teach you the broad range of touring knowledge including what you need to know about booking shows, planning, preparing promotional materials, to budgeting and fees, and touring to different markets. Join us for this workshop on Tuesday, September 13!

Finally, there is Plays Well With Others on Thursday, September 15, which provides theatre artists, producers, and administrators from any/all lived experiences a space to foster inclusive practices that target community building. This workshop will be a continuation of the equity and inclusion conversations happening in the theatre community. The forum will feature self-identified, under-represented Fringe artists.